Abdominal obesity and carotid artery wall thickness. The Los Angeles Atherosclerosis Study

To determine whether or not abdominal obesity is associated with the intima-media thickness (IMT) of the carotid artery wall independently of total body obesity and major risk factors for atherosclerosis.

: Longitudinal epidemiological study.

A total of 573 middle-aged employees of a utility company.

Sagittal and transverse abdominal diameters, their ratio and difference were used as measures of abdominal obesity.

Abdominal diameters and body mass index (BMI) were significantly associated with blood pressure, serum lipoproteins and fasting insulin. In cross-sectional multiple regression models, the sagittal/transverse ratio and BMI were significantly associated with IMT in the presence of atherosclerosis risk, but the sagittal diameter was not. In longitudinal models, baseline BMI was an independent predictor of IMT progression but the sagittal and transverse diameters were not.

These findings do not support the hypothesis that abdominal obesity is an independent predictor of carotid artery IMT. The consistent pattern of association of measures of general obesity with carotid artery IMT emphasizes the continuing need for prevention and control of this important risk factor.